Not Angels But Angels

"Not Angels But Angels"

Working Boys in Prague

Amos Lassen

"Not Angels But Angels" is a documentary about hustlers in Prague and contains interviews with a procurer as well as with nineteen boys and young men between 14 to 19 who are prostitutes in Prague. Their turf is both the central train station and the clubs and their clients are mostly tourists. They tell us why they hustle and their first time, how much they charge, how they feel about the dangers involved including AIDS, their fears and where they think they will be in the future. They by and large lack education and sophistication. They are open about who they are and what they do and some of them will break your heart.
Documentaries give food for thought and we see Prague in its most basic as kids enter the world of prostitution and the film gives insight which reveals and touches the viewer. The boys need to be protected--from their own lack of education. Boys who are in command of themselves do not usually become prostitutes but lack of money can leaf to that. In Prague, boys need the money and so they enter the world's oldest profession---they do not seem to understand the reality of the situation.
The film lifts the curtain of the secrecy of prostitution and it does so in an excellent way.

this documet about hustlers in prague in 1994 is well done. in some parts, u woldn't believe how stupid can teenagers be. but if you have to choose between angels but not angels or body without soul, take the second one. it goes deeper into the problem. i also recomend movie mandragora, which is based on these two documents and real story about two hustlers in prague.

I've been visiting Prague on a regular basis now and have found it to be a very extra-ordinary place.... quite magical I would say. Like any developing country, prostitution is a part of life. It's a choice and no but's..... like the casts of this movie, all of them had a choice but they choose to make money the "easy" way. Although I like this movie, this is no different from other movies made with the same theme. It always try to depict the "prostitute" as the victim. I'm not saying that they're not but no one forced them to this "profession" and this movie would actually prove me right. It's sad, in a way, but that is life!

For those of you who have never been to Prague or those who like to learn about eastern europe this is a good insight. i've been there several times and have witnessed first hand what this picture is about. it is a documentary that describes in detail the horrific and dreary lives of those less fortunate in post-communist czech republic. the things that young boys have to do to survive in the big city, having come from small villages outside Prague--this is not a documentary for children. This is a documentary for those who like to learn about all facets of life around the world. Picture quality is not as bad as previous reviews would lead you to believe. I think if you buy it and don't like it you could donate it to a local university's socialogy department.

Grodecki's "Not Angels But Angels" is fair treatment of the overwhelming issue adolescent male prostitution in Prague. Although I think his fictionalized treatment in "Mandragora" is better, this is a good first look into these young boys world.